Awaited: The Newest Scheme
by Dreamweaver the Writer
Summary: Dr. Eggman hasn't tried anything serious to establish the Eggman Empire for eight years. Shadow the Hedgehog has been missing for eight years. Then one day, on a rescue mission with Sonic and the gang, Cream finds him. It's only the beginning of events...
1. Prologue

**Hey guys! So this is the story I've been wanting to post since I made the account. I actually started it a couple of years ago, left it, found it again, and reworked it. I've put a ton of effort into what I'm going to do with this, and I'm really excited to just be writing it now!**

**I want to try something with this and _not_ put my pairings up ahead of time. I want to see if I can get people who don't normally like a pairing to go for it. Like, if I wrote a Sonally arc, I want to see if someone who isn't normally into Sonally will like it. (Sally's not a character here. So there is no Sonally. It's just an example.)**

**Sonic: Why did you want to do that?**

**Me: Because there's no point in getting people who already like the pairing to like it! Besides, that's part of the fun of this community!**

**Amy: Huh?**

**Me: That you can pair up a character with a couple of other different characters, and all are viable pairings! It's not like, well, maybe if not for this one - there's a lot of equally valid pairs!**

**Tails: Really?**

**Me: Haha. With you especially, Tails.**

**Tails: Uh-oh. -sweat drop-**

**Me: Oh, and it's rated T for some mature ideas and some violence later on. You know, Eggman and stuff. Somebody do a disclaimer!**

**Cream: Dreamweaver doesn't own any of the characters in this story! Sega does!**

**Me: Well... I'll get some OCs in later. Anyways, on with the show!**

* * *

The door swung open, and the rabbit jumped into the room with her ears spread. She heard nothing more than a faint hum. Relaxing her stance slightly, she looked around the room. Nothing was moving, and she didn't see any sign of Team Chaotix. The rabbit grimaced, but seeing a large monitor, she decided to check it out. She walked over and read the screen. It said in green letters, "STATUS: SUSPENDED".

She frowned. If this was Eggman's latest weapon of mass destruction, she could plug one of Tails's viruses into it… She ran her fingers across the keyboard. The machine shuddered, and a capsule was raised into view.

Suspended, in some green liquid, was a black hedgehog.

The rabbit gasped. She lifted her wrist and started fumbling with her communicator in nervous excitement. "Sonic, come in," she said, keeping her eyes on the black hedgehog.

"What's up, Cream?" Sonic's voice spoke from her unit. "Did you find them?"

"No, but I found someone else," Cream answered. She tilted her head.

There was a short pause. "Friendly?" he asked, sounding puzzled.

"At last check." Cream bit her lip. "Can I check back in a minute?"

"You have that long before I freak out," a female voice entered the stream.

"Thanks, Amy," the rabbit grinned. "I'm out." She turned the volume down a bit, then shifted her focus to the machine. She closed her eyes, trying to remember. After a few seconds, she remembered and plugged a few commands into the keyboard. The machine hissed and the liquid began to drain away. Cream blinked in surprise. She had expected a password. If Eggman was letting him go without a password, he might be bugged. They'd have to scan him.

The capsule opened, and the hedgehog landed on a foot and a knee. Cream figured he must be conscious, since he didn't topple over. He was still for a moment. Then he opened his eyes, scarlet irises burning, and jumped next to Cream. "What do you want?" he asked, anger lacing his voice.

"Huh?" Cream frowned, perplexed. Why the anger?

"Look, whatever it is precious _Eggie_ wants, tell him I'm not his robot," he replied, narrowing his eyes.

"Wha – why would I be telling anything to Eggman?" Cream furrowed her brow. "It's been a while, so, um, maybe you don't recognize me, but, I'm Cream."

"Sure you are," he said bitingly. "And I'm _sure_ you're not a robot posing as Cream ten years in the future. I'm sure you're _not_ going to try to manipulate me into the doctor's schemes, just like last time. Are you stupid? Did you think I'd _forgotten?_ You'll break just as easily as that last robot!" He shifted his stance.

"Shadow, wait!" Cream said, eyes wide, but he was already in motion. She pumped her ears and flew just in time to avoid a vicious, powerful kick. She looked down, concerned. Okay, Shadow thought she was a robot because of something Eggman had tried before to use him. So how did she convince him that she wasn't?

Shadow ran up to the wall, preparing to jump at her, and suddenly she had an idea.

As expected, he leaped at her and swung around for a hard kick. Cream sidestepped (in a flying way, of course) and grabbed his arm. Shadow turned his head, eyes wild, but Cream spun around and landed simultaneously. She couldn't let him control this situation, and spinning generally threw people off.

Before he could regain control, she had to do one thing. She pulled on his arm and put his hand to the side of her neck.

Shadow's expression was a mixture of surprise and confusion. "Do you feel that?" Cream asked softly. "Robots don't have pulses, Shadow." She knew he could feel it. Her heart was hammering too hard from the recent rush of adrenaline for him to not.

Shadow opened and closed his mouth a few times, still in minor shock. Cream waited for him to put his thoughts together.

"Cream, what's going _on?_" Amy asked over the communicator.

The rabbit sighed and let go of Shadow's arm. "Sorry, can you give me a moment?" Shadow gave a brief nod, and Cream pressed her communicator. "Sorry, Amy, I didn't realize I was over a minute."

"Chill, Ames," Sonic's carefree voice came back. "Cream, is your person friendly?"

"A little confused, but yes," she answered. Shadow gave her a look. She let go of the button. "Well, it's true! Besides, how am I supposed to tell them you tried to kill me because you thought I was an Eggman robot?"

"Who is it?" Sonic asked.

"Sonic, Tails reporting," another voice broke in. "We found Chaotix. They're unconscious and Vector and Charmy look a little beat up, but I think we can move them without a problem."

"Good work, Tails! Hey, Cream, tell your person to come out with us. Meet at the entrance!" The communicator silenced.

"Do you want to come?" Cream asked, turning to the door.

"Sounds like I should," Shadow sighed, and began skating after her.

* * *

"I wonder why they were here in the first place?" Knuckles asked, crossing his arms. "Egghead wouldn't bother to go _after_ them."

"He might, if he wanted to get at us," Sonic answered. "Especially you or Cream. It's more likely they came here, I'll agree."

"You think they were thinking like Tails?" Amy teased. Tails blushed and started to say something, but Amy cut him off. "Hey, there's Cream! And…" Amy stopped talking, and her jaw dropped. Knuckles followed her gaze. Cream was flying out, and skating behind her… Knuckles' eyes widened.

"Shadow?" Rouge whispered, her hand to her mouth. Sonic, Amy, and Tails somehow exchanged three-way glances simultaneously. Knuckles furrowed his brow. Shadow? _Now_ he showed up, after eight years?

"Hi, guys!" Cream said as she landed, smiling. "Look who I found!"

Sonic had already recovered. "Hey, Shadow!" he said, grinning. "Been wondering what you were up to!"

Shadow glared at him, obviously irritated. "Literally, nothing," he answered, crossing his arms. "How long have I been gone?"

"Eight years," Tails answered. Shadow's eyes widened slightly. "You were in suspended animation again?"

"_Tails?_" Shadow asked, surprised. Knuckles could understand his confusion – Tails was twice as old as when Shadow vanished. Knuckles imagined that Cream must have been much more of a shock to him.

"Hi, Rouge," Rouge said sarcastically, hands on her hips. "Nice to see you, Rouge. Looking good, Rouge. Anything that's acknowledgement of some sort would be appreciated."

"Some things never change, eh, Rouge?" Shadow replied, half-smirking.

"I suppose that'll do," Rouge said with a shrug.

Knuckles snorted and smiled. "Could we continue with this at Cream's place?" he suggested. "We still have an unconscious chameleon, crocodile, and bee, don't forget."

"Sure," Sonic agreed. "I was planning to make two trips, but… Shadow, wanna help with transport?" He caught the Chaos Emerald Knuckles tossed him.

Shadow tilted his head at the Chaos Emerald, and then he smirked. "I see no reason not to." Rouge threw him a Chaos Emerald. Shadow caught it and gave Rouge a look. "Seems I have a lot to catch up on."

Sonic laughed. "A lot changes in eight years, that's for sure."

Within moments, everyone was moving at blinding Chaos speed, clinging to a blue or black hedgehog, to Cream's house. And Shadow couldn't help but wonder just how much had changed.

* * *

**Me: Yay! We've started!**

**Sonic: Whoa! The faker's actually coming back with us _willingly!_**

**Shadow: That's only because I don't know what's going on yet! I haven't decided to stay with you guys!**

**Cream: Um, okay, let's settle down for now...**

**Amy: Please review! See you soon!**


	2. Day 1: Shadow

**Me: Hm, looks like a week is a good time to wait for updates!**

**Cream: How do you figure that? I was ready to keep going!**

**Me: Well, it's a good length of time to get some responses from people, and it gives me enough time to actually write the next chapter!**

**Sonic: ...it took you a week to write this?**

**Me: No, it only took a couple of hours. But it took a week for me to actually have that couple of hours to write!**

**Tails: That's... sad.**

**Me: Oh, whatever. So, the viewpoint changes a lot in this story. It's in first person most of the time, and whose eyes you're seeing through is in the chapter title.**

**Shadow: So I'm the one talking this whole time?**

**Me: Yup! And you're one of my favorite characters, but it is a pain to be in your head sometimes, my friend.**

**Shadow: ...and I care because...?**

**Me: Oh, whatever! Do the disclaimer!**

**Shadow: -sighs- Dreamweaver doesn't own the characters in this story right now, just the plot. Sega owns us.**

**Me: And on we go!**

* * *

I stop when we reach the house, and Cream immediately lets go of my arm to open the door. Tails and Rouge lift Vector off of my back and fly through the doorway. Knuckles, carrying Espio on his back, and Amy, carrying Charmy over her shoulder, follow through. Sonic walks in after them, and Cream, still holding the door, looks at me and smiles. I sigh. If I knew more… but I don't, so I walk in anyway.

The house is pretty large. The first room I see, the living room, is open, light, and airy, with very high ceilings. I suppose it's a good room for a cheerful flying rabbit, but the tranquility of this room is… unusual for me, to say the least. For some reason, the peace of this room makes me feel uneasy. I notice Cream pointing down a hallway as Tails and Rouge carry Vector. She flies over to the couch and picks a few things up as that irritating faker lays out across a loveseat, careful to keep his sneakers dangling off the armrest.

"You goof," Amy declares as she returns to the room, and she flicks Sonic on the nose. To my surprise, Sonic doesn't open his eyes, but merely grins and sticks out his tongue.

"Didn't you know that already?" he asks, half-opening his eyes. Amy smiles, but she rolls her eyes and walks to the kitchen.

Their interactions surprise me. They're considerably more comfortable around each other than they were before. Knuckles walks into the room, talking on his communicator. "Just as soon as you can," he says, blinking. The volume is low enough that I can't hear who he's talking to. "Bye."

I frown and cross my arms. I'm here because I want to know what's changed over eight years, but I can see one thing's the same: the unity of this group is so tight, it's almost suffocating.

Tails lands on the couch and starts talking to Sonic quietly. Rouge walks up to Knuckles and grabs his hand. To my surprise, he smiles as he turns to her. I blink. Knuckles and Rouge? The Master Emerald's guardian, and a jewel thief?

I hear a small sound above, and I look up. Cream has just caught a box, although I have no idea where it came from. She notices my look. "Ah, sorry," she says, blushing. She puts the box on top of… the wall? I realize quickly that there are hidden shelves. Clever. "Feel free to sit anywhere," she says to me, smiling. "Amy, do you need help with anything?" She flies into the kitchen. I blink. Amy already has something cooking on the stovetop.

Knuckles and Rouge, still holding hands, have joined Sonic and Tails's conversation, and I can only distinguish Rouge's voice. Tails's voice has deepened and at the volume they speak, his voice matches Sonic's and Knuckles'. It's somewhat disorienting. Amy and Cream are laughing at some joke as Cream sets the table. And that's when it hits me.

I don't want to be there. This whole scene is nauseating. I can figure out what's changed later.

I turn to the door. "Shadow?" I hear Rouge ask. "What are you doing?"

I sigh and turn back. She's seriously surprised? Did she forget me already? "I don't want anything to do with your group picnic," I answer tartly. "I'll come back when you guys are actually doing something important."

Rouge looks briefly angry, but I don't care. She can work it out later. I open the door. As I do, there's a flash of light and suddenly a pink-orange echidna is standing in front of me. She blinks. "You were right, Knuckles," she says. "I _did_ want to see this."

I frown, and it takes me a second to remember her name. "Shade?"

She nods. "Were you _leaving,_ Shadow?"

I don't answer her immediately, because I'm trying to process her new appearance. She's no longer wearing her full armor, which is the only reason I notice. Her belt, boots, elbow-length gloves, and headband appear to be made of the same material as her armor was. But she's wearing black skinny jeans and a black tank top now. I shake my head. "Shade, get out of my way," I say to her, crossing my arms.

She narrows her eyes. "Shadow, what good reason do you have to leave? I know you haven't been around for a while, so you don't know what needs to be done. And you don't know much about what's happening with _us,_ either."

"As much as I hate to admit it, Armor-All is right," Rouge says, and I turn to see her grimace. (Armor-All?) "It's more to your advantage to know which of us to call for what."

"As much as you hate to admit it?" Shade repeats, anger lacing her voice. (I'm surprised that's the part she's locking in on.)

Knuckles groans. "Guys, _not_ the time," he says, putting his free hand to his forehead.

Sonic frowns. "Knux, _you_ saying that doesn't – "

I furrow my brow. Where did this fighting come from, suddenly?

Tails bites his lip. "Hey – "

"Stop it!" Amy shouts, glaring at Rouge and Knuckles in particular. There's a moment of silence. Rouge clenches her jaw, Knuckles clenches his fist, and Sonic frowns again.

I decide I probably _should_ leave now. I start to turn, but Cream suddenly asks, "Hey, Shadow, do you like beef soup?"

I blink in surprise and turn back to her. "What?" I frown.

"Beef soup," she repeats. "It has beef broth and chunks, plus potatoes and a bunch of veggies and stuff." Rouge is giving her a strange look, but Cream ignores her and examines me.

I start to answer that I'm not hungry, but I realize I am. And that puzzles me. Why would I be hungry? Usually, I come out of suspended animation the same way I went in, and I never go on missions on an empty stomach. So why…?

"If you don't like it, we can put something else together," Cream says hesitantly, turning towards the kitchen.

I realize my confusion must have been showing on my face. "Oh, that's not… you just made me think about something else," I explain quickly. "The soup sounds fine."

"Great!" Cream says, grinning. Amy smirks, and I suddenly realize I've just committed myself to staying for dinner. I scowl and walk back in. Shade walks in behind me and closes the door. "Hey, uh, Rouge, can you check on the Chaotix?" Cream looks at her.

"Sure," Rouge says with a sigh, getting up and walking down the hall. Shade sits next to Sonic and I sit in the isolated chair.

"Knuckles, can you grab another place setting?" Cream asks. I can't see her, so I'm not sure what she's doing.

"Yeah," Knuckles answers. As he stands up, I realize most of the tension has died down. Cream wasn't just changing the subject – she was redirecting the main perpetrators of the tension. I'm slightly impressed.

"Cream's the most effective peacekeeper in our group," Tails says quietly to me, smiling. I cross my arms. _Shadow, stop being so expressive!_ I scold myself. "She's taken a much more assertive role since you last saw her, eh?"

"You've changed a lot, too," I point out, leaning back.

"Physically," he consents. He's gotten taller, and his namesakes have gotten longer. "But mentally, I'm basically the same."

I examine the group more carefully than before, looking for more physical changes. Sonic and Knuckles haven't really changed, but they were two of the older ones anyway. Rouge walks back into the room, and I decide she hasn't changed much either. She's still wearing the same jumpsuit, but she's also wearing a red belt and red eye shadow instead of whatever she had before. (Blue, I think.)

Amy walks to the table with a large pot, and I assess her. Her quills are no longer straight down, standing up like Sonic's or mine, but they're long enough that they droop a little further down than ours. She's also wearing a different (still red) dress, white leggings, and the same boots. "Cream, can you grab an extra chair?" she calls, setting the pot down.

"Sure," Cream answers. "Rouge, I'm guessing the Chaotix are still out?"

"Yeah," Rouge replies, taking her seat again by Knuckles. "I don't think they'll be back any time tonight."

"Okay." Cream flies out carrying another chair. She's taller than she was before, naturally, and her ears are longer as well. She's wearing a long orange shirt with a blue sash around her waist, dark blue jeans, and orange and yellow boots. As she places the chair down and stands upright, I see she also has a woman's figure now. Not as crazy as Rouge's, but noticeable, and rather flattering. Cream had definitely changed the most in the group physically. Then again, she _did_ get more than twice as old. "Soup's on!"

"Sweet!" Sonic says, going to the table. The rest of the groups goes after him, and I hesitantly follow along. "Ames, this looks great."

Amy winks as she fills his bowl. It does look like a pretty good soup, but I'm really not that focused on it. "You two seem a lot different now," I comment, giving them a look.

She giggles. "Oh, yeah, when you left, I was asking Sonic to marry me, wasn't I?" Amy smiles. "Well, more like threatening him with my hammer if he said he wouldn't," she edits, shrugging. Cream laughs as she hands me my bowl of soup. I thank her, and she nods. "But a lot changes in eight years, you know? Guess who's asking to get married now?" Amy grins and reaches ever-so-intentionally for the ladle with her left hand, giving a diamond ring on her finger a chance to glimmer innocently.

I blink. "Who would have thought, Sonic the Hedgehog getting married? Getting tied down in one place doesn't seem your style, faker."

Sonic laughs. "More like having a central location and someone to run with," he answers easily, grinning. "Mind, someone gorgeous and fearless and perfect in every way." He eats a spoonful of soup.

Amy grins, and Tails makes a retching sound. "Sonic, you are such a _mush,_" he says somewhat disdainfully, eating some soup. I shake my head. Tails _is_ the same. I take a bite of soup and realize just how hungry I am.

Sonic makes a sound. "Whatever, Tails. Someday, you'll meet someone and you'll be just as 'bad'." He air-quotes "bad". "So, you have questions, right, Shadow?"

I frown. I do, but I don't think I've said that. Sonic's not as hyper as he used to be, but he's just as annoying with his conclusions. "Yeah," I answer. "So, you and Amy." They nod in unison with the same silly smile, and I shake my head for a moment. "And Knuckles and Rouge?"

Rouge laughs. "Well, that's more recent than those two. Nice to know you _were_ paying attention." She grins.

I roll my eyes. "How does a jewel thief end up with the guardian of the Master Emerald, anyway?"

"A jewel thief in general doesn't," Knuckles answers, spooning more soup. "Someone who only steals from thieves and who guards the – "

"Wait a second," Cream says, eyes widening. "I'm sorry, Knuckles, I forgot something." She flies into the living room, and I watch, puzzled, as she pulls out a strange machine with a narrow, rectangular piece and a small monitor.

Tails gasps. Apparently, he recognizes the machine. "You think there's a bug?" he asks, surprise coloring his voice. "Where?"

Cream blushes and frowns. "Um, well…" She hesitates slightly. "There wasn't a password to release Shadow, so I thought I should check him." She looks sheepish.

"Geez, Cream," Sonic says, grimacing. "I'm glad you remembered before we actually _said_… well, never mind."

"Sorry," Cream says quietly to me, for some reason looking rather embarrassed.

I give her a look. "There's nothing to apologize for," I point out. It's a very typical move for the doctor.

Creams nods and starts moving the machine around my head. It starts beeping frantically by my left ear. She sighs. "Um, sorry about this." She sets the machine down and carefully moves my ear forward.

I have to work very hard not to react to this. I know she's only looking for the bug, it's just been so long since someone has touched me, without trying to kill me or something. It's the same thing that threw me off when Cream was proving herself to not be a robot. Realizing she wasn't trying to sling me to the ground and… that… whole scene. Hugely disorienting, to say the least.

"There it is," Cream murmurs, bringing me back to the table. She pinches at something and pulls. I clench my fist under the table to keep from reacting – the dumb thing feels _stitched_ in – but eventually my head pops slightly forward and Cream is holding a tiny piece of machinery between her fingertips. "Okay, good." She hands it to Tails.

"Good thing you remembered it _then,_ Cream," he says as he disengages the bug. "If Knuckles had said one more word…"

"I just hope it wasn't too much already," she answers, frowning. She notices me rubbing my ear. "Sorry, Shadow."

I quickly stop rubbing my ear, although it's still sore. "It's fine," I say quickly. "So, uh, how does the jewel thief get with the guardian again? Someone who just steals from thieves, and what?"

Knuckles frowns at the bug. "And someone," he picks up, "who guards the Chaos Emeralds would have better chance than a jewel thief.

I blink. "Rouge guards the Chaos Emeralds?"

"Some of them," Shade interjects, crossing her arms. "Knuckles and I also guard some of them. I usually have the cyan and red ones, Knuckles usually has the yellow and blue ones, and Rouge usually has the silver, violet, and green."

"Well, Shadow has the green right now," Rouge says, smiling at me. "I think Sonic already gave his back."

I frown. "Why the distribution?"

"The same reason we didn't guard them for a long time," Knuckles answers. "If all the Emeralds are in one place, it makes it too easy to just grab them all. Between Shade and I, four of the Emeralds are on Angel Island, usually. So it wasn't until we could trust Rouge that we could split them effectively."

"Hang on." I give the three of them a look. "You're dating Rouge, but you and Shade both live on Angel Island?"

Knuckles blushes furiously, his cheeks matching his fur. "We don't live _together_. We just live on the same island. But on different parts."

"Apparently, all echidnas _have_ to live on Angel Island," Rouge says, narrowing her eyes at Shade.

Shade glares and starts to answer, but Sonic interjects, "Not now, guys." He rolls his eyes. "It's a little complicated."

I give him a look. "Apparently."

Tails bites his lip as he gets more soup. "So, Shadow, how come you were in suspended animation again?" he asks, trying to break the tension.

I frown. "Well, to the best of my memory, the doctor was trying to get me to work on a plan with him, and I told him I had no interest. He then informed me he'd been researching tranquilizers, and proceeded to use me as a demonstration."

"And he kept you to try to use you for a later day?" Cream asks, tilting her head.

I nod. "I imagine these tranquilizers have been greatly irritating when you've been fighting the doctor?"

Sonic sighs. "Actually, we haven't seen much of Eggman over the last seven years, much less his tranquilizers."

I blink. "What?"

"Eggman hasn't done anything since the last time Sonic and Amy shut him down seven years ago to try to take over the world," Tails says. He looks… troubled. "Honestly, it worries me more that we haven't seen him than anything else."

Amy laughs, and Tails blushes. "Why?" I ask.

"I…" Tails looks down. "Well, I think if we haven't seen him in this long, he's working on something _really_ big. Something that'll be hard even for us to stop."

I give him a look, but he doesn't look up. Amy giggles again. "Come on, pessimist," she says, smiling. "I'm with you for the first three, maybe four years, but _seven?_ Is it _that_ impossible that Eggman could have run out of ideas, or given up?"

"It could go either way," I say, frowning at her energy. "If you're so concerned, why didn't you check out the base while you were there?"

"That's the thing," Sonic sighed. "Eggman sending us the message about I-have-your-friends with the Chaotix is one of the biggest thing he's done in a while, and we _thought_ we'd be infiltrating his fortress and get some clue as to what's up. But the place turned out to be mostly an empty warehouse. We're not sure where his base is right now."

"Why wouldn't you…?" I almost ask why they haven't been keeping better track, but another thought occurs to me. "Wait. I stuffed away in an abandoned warehouse?"

Rouge laughs. "Geez, Shadow, you sound so _offended,_" she teases, smirking. Knuckles also smirks.

"It _is_ offensive!" I sigh. "Agh, never mind."

Cream starts clearing dishes off the table. Knuckles stands up. "Thanks for dinner, guys," he says to Amy and Cream. "I have to get back to the Master Emerald."

I frown. It didn't even occur to me that he should have been there to start with. "Why… didn't you have to be there from the start, I guess?" I ask.

"Well, Tails built a guardian machine for the Master Emerald so I can be a little more flexible," Knuckles explains. I still feel better when someone's actually guarding it, so I still stay with it a lot, but the Chaotix are some of my closest friends and I wanted to help."

"And I can guard it when he's gone if I don't need to be there," Shade adds. "I should probably go back to the Island as well. Bye, guys."

Rouge gives her a dirty look as Knuckles grabs her arm and they teleport away. "I guess I'll go home, too," she says, flying through a skylight window.

Sonic sighs. "Shadow, do you know where you're staying tonight? You could stay at mine and Tails's place if you want."

I glare at him. "Why would I stay with you two?"

Tails blinks. "Well, if the Chaotix wake up, how will we let you know? I'm sure you'll want to talk to them, too."

I sigh. "But why does that require me staying with you? I'm not going to sit around your place indefinitely waiting for them to wake up."

Tails frowns, but Cream steps in again. "Shadow, I think we have an extra communicator, if you want," she offers. "That way we could let you know no matter where you are."

"Okay," I answer. I don't really want another option thrown out.

Tails sighs. "I'll hook it up," he says, flying to a different wall. Sonic is evaluating me with an intentionally blank expression. I try to ignore him and watch Amy and Cream clean dishes. Tails flies down and hands me the communicator, which looks like a wristwatch without the time and with more dials and buttons. He explains to me how to control the volume, talk, and talk to a specific person. "If you don't pick specify a person, everyone hears what you're saying. Everyone meaning everyone who was at dinner tonight. I think that's it."

"Got it." I strap the contraption on my wrist. "Thanks for dinner, I guess. Bye." I walk out the door, pick up the green Chaos Emerald again, and run off into the night at Chaos speed.

* * *

**Amy: The first pairings show themselves! So this is a Sonamy fic? -very happy-**

**Rouge: And a Knuckouge? -smiles-**

**Me: Well, you should be able to tell that Knuckouge isn't entirely settled. Think of it more as a Knuckouge arc until it gets clarified more.**

**Knuckles: Huh?**

**Me: We'll get more into that in the next couple of chapters.**

**Knuckles: Oh geez. Why are you doing this to me?**

**Me: You're one of my favorite characters, Knuckles! So of COURSE I'm going to mess with you the most!**

**Knuckles: -sweat drop-**

**Sonic: ...is Sonamy settled, though?**

**Me: Oh, yeah. That one's basically staying. Although, really, the only other options for you come from Archie, so once you know I don't use Archie characters, there's really nothing else to see coming.**

**Tails: What about Elise?**

**Sonic: Who?**

**Me: EW! I'm so glad that never happened! -retches-**

**Sonic: ... I still don't understand.**

**Me: Don't worry about it. So, to say it again: this is a SONAMY fic!**

**Amy: Yay! Please review guys!**

**Me: And I want to hear some predictions with the pairings! Hee hee! Bye!**


	3. Night 1: Cream

**Me: Yay!**

**Cream: What's so "yay", Jessi?**

**Me: Well, I'm happy I actually made Sunday, for one, and for two, I got more reviews than I expected!**

**Shadow: Three reviews is hardly worth celebrating.**

**Me: Hey, it makes ME happy. I don't think traffic's working, so I can't tell when people are reading this unless they review.**

**Shadow: -shakes head-**

**Amy: I notice we're using day and night.**

**Me: Yup. I figure since they do it in the games, it makes sense to do it in a story.**

**Cream: Sure!**

**Me: And we can thank Cream for making Sunday!**

**Amy: We can?**

**Me: Yup! After all, we're in her sweet mentality! Cream, can you do the disclaimer?**

**Cream: Sure! Dreamweaver doesn't own any of the characters in this story so far, SEGA does!**

**Me: Onward we go!**

* * *

I squeeze my eyes shut and hold my pillow tightly. I can already tell my dream is going in a bad direction. I hear a door opening, and then I hear a loud scream.

It's my scream.

I open my eyes and breathe heavily. Just a dream. Just a memory. If I had actually screamed, I would have woken Amy up. As it is… maybe I should take a flight to clear my thoughts.

I sigh, frustrated at how regular these flights are becoming. I flip the covers off of me and sit up. "Chao!" I hear from under my covers.

"Oh my gosh, I'm sorry, Cheese!" I exclaim, pulling the covers back. I pick him up and pet him for a while. Cheese hasn't been feeling well lately, but that's not really surprising. Every couple of years, a Chao will go into a cocoon and either reincarnate with all its memories or go on to the next life. A well-treated Chao can usually only do this two or three times. Cheese surprised me with a fourth reincarnation, and the day is approaching again soon. One more thing I don't want to think about right now. I put Cheese down on his pillow, and he curls up and goes back to sleep. I frown, fly up to the skylight window, and soar out of the room.

It's a gorgeous, clear night. On a lot of nights like this, I would just sit on the roof and try to connect the star-dots. However, tonight there's an ocean that needs watching, and I'm happy to let the waves clear away my thoughts.

As I fly towards the cliff, I see someone else standing there. For a fleeting second, I think it's Sonic, but I see a splash of red on his quills and I realize it's Shadow. Over eight years since I last mixed them up. I shake my head and land next to him. "Hi, Shadow," I say, waving. Shadow looks sideways at me. "Couldn't sleep?" I sit at the edge of the cliff, my feet dangling over the ocean.

"I don't usually need to sleep," he answers, frowning. "Why are you here?"

"Just needed to clear my thoughts," I answer lightly. "Usually watching the ocean helps, so I come here." I look at the ocean and its peaceful, slow, rolling waves, and I smile.

"I see." I listen carefully, expecting to hear him leave, but he doesn't make a sound or apparently a movement. And so silently we both watch the ocean and breath in the salty sea air. "…can I ask you something?" he asks after a moment. I turn to him and nod. His arms are crossed. "Why… why did that spat before dinner happen?"

I sigh and bite my lip. "Well, when did the fighting start?" I figure if I give him the pieces, he can put them together.

He narrows his eyes. "When I started leaving."

Oh. Oops. That came across a little accusatory, and it wasn't what I meant anyway. "Um, well, that was going on at about the same time," (and it probably didn't help anything) "but something else was happening too, remember?"

Shadow furrows his brow. "Shade arriving, you mean?"

I nod. "That's it. And do you remember who started the fighting?"

He drums his finger against his arm. "Rouge, I think."

"Right. Rouge started the fighting after Shade came."

"Rouge has an issue with Shade, and everyone else got dragged in." I nod. He frowns. "I'm guessing the issue is Knuckles." I nod again. "Okay, so she's not happy that Shade lives on Angel Island, but why make a deal of it? They live on different parts of the Island."

It occurs to me the key piece of the puzzle may not have been obvious based on tonight, and I sigh. "Eh… there's… a little more to her jealousy than that. You see, Shade also has feelings for Knuckles." I grimace.

Shadow gives me a look. "And you tell me this because…?"

"You asked." I shrug. "Besides, everyone in the group knows it. It's not much of a secret."

"So Rouge is jealous of Shade because she lives so close to Knuckles and has a crush on him." He frowns. "That sounds fairly well-founded."

"Don't get the wrong idea," I add, also frowning. "Shade doesn't try to flirt with Knuckles or anything. She respects him as Rouge's boyfriend and doesn't try to mess with their relationship. But Shade told Rouge she wasn't going to move off of Angel Island, where she's been living for over seven years, because of Rouge's insecurities and trust issues.

Shadow makes a sound of disbelief. I smirk. "Yeah, Shade's always been really straightforward. Anyway, of course Rouge got mad, they got into a fight, and they've sort of been at each other's throats ever since." I bite my lip. I feel bad for Shade. The fact that Knuckles is with Rouge doesn't bring closure for her… just more pain.

"She should know better than to get on Rouge's bad side," Shadow sighs. "Rouge holds grudges longer than almost anyone I know, and she's vicious."

I laugh. "Well, she knows that _now,_ but that doesn't help her much at this point." He smirks and looks back out. I take a deep breath and glance down. I let the silence sit for a moment. "Can I ask _you_ something, Shadow?" I ask hesitantly.

He sighs. "I guess that's fair."

I blink and try not to smile. That was a much better response than I expected. "Um… why _did_ you try to leave before?"

He scowls, looking very irritated. "I would have _thought_ someone would remember I don't actually care about most of you. I came along because obviously a lot had changed, if _Rouge_ was giving me a Chaos Emerald. But I didn't want anything to do with your silliness, the laughing and smiling and hand-holding or – " He crossed his arms. " – whatever," he muttered, glancing off.

I tilt my head, examining his expression. He looks annoyed, probably at what he's just said, and perhaps a little embarrassed, maybe for saying so much. I blink, carefully thinking over his words. "So… was it Knuckles and Rouge that were bothering you?" Shadow blinks in surprise and looks back at me. "Because they were the only ones doing any hand-holding." I stand up. I want to look at him at a more even eye level.

He frowns. "No," he answers after a moment. "It wasn't them in particular. They were just sort of the epitome of what was bothering me."

I nod, and I smirk. "Rouge would be disappointed to hear that," I comment without thinking.

"Sorry?" Shadow gives me a look.

And that's when it occurs to me what I've just said. I put a hand to my mouth and I can feel the blood rushing to my face. "Uh, well that is – I mean, that's not the case anymore – uh…" I groan. "Please don't tell her I said that," I mutter, flushing and glancing away. _Cream, you idiot…_

"Why would I?" He frowns. "I never saw Rouge as anything more than a partner. So there's no point in bringing up any past infatuations she may have had." He tightens his crossed arms.

I exhale slowly, my breath warming my hands. I'm such a moron. Rouge's crush on Shadow had died after his disappearance, but of _course_ as soon as he gets back, I tell him about it! Even though she obviously cares about Knuckles the most now, and even though I don't tell their secrets! And what am I feeling? Guilty, embarrassed, a little panicked, and…

"Besides," Shadow continues, "she and Knuckles obviously care about each other the most. There's no need to complicate that."

I snap back. "Well, Knuckles – " I clench my jaw, trying to shut myself up. I keep just offering Shadow information! Why am I telling him these things so freely? Anyone else with a much more personal investment could be begging, and I wouldn't betray their secrets, because that's what they trust me to do. Is it just because I'm explaining so much to Shadow already that I'm letting stuff slip? "Never mind," I mutter, crossing my arms.

Shadow gives me a look of disbelief. "You're keeping secrets for Knuckles, too? Next you're going to be almost blabbing something about Tails or some such thing." He frowns. "Are you keeping secrets for the entire group?" he asks, rather scathingly.

I blush. "Uh, well…" Sort of yes? I bite my lip.

He looks surprised, and then irritated. "Then stop beating yourself up for letting one thing about Rouge eight years ago slip. It's hardly fair for them to expect you to hold all of their dirty laundry in. If you fill a cup too full, it is _going_ to spill." He gives me a hard look.

I frown and look down. "Just because something isn't fair doesn't mean it won't happen," I mutter. The memory that woke me up starts coming back…

Out of the corner of my eyes, I see Shadow uncross his arms. "What…?" I hear something unusual in his voice. It sounds almost like… concern.

"I think I'm going to try to go back to sleep," I say abruptly, faking a yawn. I can already tell the conversation is not going in a direction I want it to. "See you when the Chaotix wakes up, eh?"

Shadow frowns. "I suppose."

"Okay, cool." I lift into the air. "Bye!" I fly back towards my house, and as I do, I replay the conversation in my mind.

So I told him about Rouge's old crush. Admittedly, that was probably the least damaging thing I could have mentioned. I knew Shadow wouldn't bring it up again. I kept myself from telling him how Knuckles hasn't really chosen between his feelings for Rouge and Shade, and how he's just giving Rouge the first chance because she's been there longer. That was good. Regardless of if Shadow cared or not, it wouldn't help anything for someone else to know that.

I think about the last part of what Shadow was saying, about how it wasn't fair for the group to expect me to keep all of their secrets. Was it unfair? I suddenly realize what else I was feeling right after I told about Rouge.

Relief.

Relief that it isn't any longer another one of those things I have to keep pent-up inside of me, relief that it's no longer as much a shameful thing I have to keep in the dark. It is a _relief_ that someone besides me knows it. It feels like some of my burden has been lifted. And the funny thing was, I hadn't even realized it was a burden before tonight. I hadn't realized how tired I was of keeping all the secrets in the group.

But then I think about the look Shadow gave me directly after I said it. He looked mostly surprised, and also a little irritated. He also looked more befuddled as he responded. I think about how hurt and angry Rouge would have been if she knew I had told Shadow about her old crush. And I frown.

The thing is, it's still not fair to them for me to start spouting off their secrets. And I also realize if my burden is lightened, it means someone else had to take part of the load onto themselves. And how can I ask them to take something I don't want?

Well, the flight certainly didn't do much for clearing my thoughts. I land back in my bed, exhausted, and I lie down and try to fall into a dreamless sleep. I might get it once my thoughts stop racing and I finally pass out. Hopefully.

* * *

**Me: So, there you go.**

**Rouge: So that's why you didn't want to call it Knuckouge, even though Knuckie and I are together?**

**Me: Yup! This story has a ROUGExKNUCKLESxSHADE love triangle! Right now, Rouge seems to be in the lead, but this story isn't over until it's over!**

**Shade: You mean I'm going to win?**

**Me: I'm just saying it isn't decided yet. I'm not going to tell you how it ends.**

**Knuckles: I don't know if I like this.**

**Me: Oh well! Sorry if the shorter chapter bothers anyone...**

**Cream: Well, nothing more really needed to be said.**

**Sonic: Please review! I want to show up in a chapter again!**

**Me: Whiner. You will, don't worry. See you!**


	4. Day 2: Tails

**Cool! The story marches along!**

**Sonic: You even have a new reviewer, don't you?**

**Me: Yup! AND traffic's back up, so I know when people are reading the story!**

**Tails: Yeah, I decided to help Fanfiction out.**

**Amy: ...sure. If you really did, the site would never fail.**

**Tails: Well, I only left them a note.**

**Me: ...mm-hm. Tails, your turn to see and to do the disclaimer.**

**Tails: Oh, okay! Dreamweaver doesn't own any of the characters so far, Sega does!**

* * *

Day 2 – Tails

I reach into the metal cavity for hopefully the last time. I feel around until I find the right cable, rewire it, and close the cavity. As I adjust my hold on the device, I realize it looks like an oversized shotgun. I frown. Guess I'll have to improve the visual design once it works.

Functionality first, though. I reset my trap, designed just for this test. It shoots silly string when it's engaged and someone walks by. Harmless, easily observable, and a slight annoyance to Sonic if I crash in the workshop before disengaging it. I point my newest remake at the trap and pull the trigger. Nothing visible comes out of the device's end, but the silly string trap falls apart. I grin and try not to shout. Sonic hates being woken up.

I suddenly yawn. Sleep… I don't know what time it is. I think it's later than usual, but I was so close to finishing this. I told Shade a few years ago I wanted to try to replicate the trap buster she used when she kidnapped Knuckles back in the day, and she laughed and said it would take me at least ten years of undivided attention. Wait until she hears it only took four-ish years of scattered attention.

I put down the device, patting it in satisfaction, and then I check the clock. Five o' clock? I blink. I _did_ lose track of time. Usually I go to bed by two. I sigh. At this point, it's too dark to do anything, but too late to actually go to sleep… well, maybe I can slip a nap in.

I walk upstairs, considering that I might want to make the effects a little more subtle. I hear Sonic murmuring in his sleep as I walk past his room. I push my door open, and in three seconds flat I'm asleep on my bed.

The next thing I know, Sonic is shaking me awake. "Mm?" I murmur into my pillow, annoyed and still half-asleep.

"Sorry, Tails, but the Chaotix woke up," Sonic explains. (He usually just lets me sleep.) "I figured you wouldn't want us to start asking questions without you."

"Kay. Thanks." I yawn, opening my eyes half-way. "What time is it?"

"A little past 11." Sonic turns to the door. "See you at Cream's."

I nod and he leaves. Hm… six hours isn't bad, I guess. I don't really have time to properly get ready, but I splash water on my face to wake up. Downstairs, I grab the watering can and head outside.

Cosmo's plant has grown very quickly into a thick, tall tree. It only took a week to outgrow my first pot and a month to be planted outside. It looks centuries old, but I know better. I know…

I suddenly remember my dream from last night. It was what things could have been like if she were still alive. She was sixteen and gorgeous and she was holding my hand as we walked through a park and when I asked her if she thought we were too young to be picking out rings her eyes sparkled and she said no, no and she laughed and flew at me and held me and I held her and she was so beautiful and so _alive_…

A tear trickles down my cheek and into the watering can.

I grimace and wipe the tears from my eyes, locking my jaw. I pour water around the tree's roots, deliberately going slowly. The can runs dry, so I put it back inside, pick up the package I found yesterday, and launch into the sky. It's a clear day, no clouds in sight, and it's a little warmer this high in the air. I focus on that warmth, letting it drive out my thoughts.

I don't focus enough on flying and I accidentally fly past Cream's house. Oops. I groan and turn around. I open up the skylight window and land in the living room. "Hey, guys," I say, turning around.

"Tails, you look half-dead," Amy comments, sitting on Sonic's right side on the couch. I sit on Sonic's other side. "How late were you up last night? Still working on your trap buster?"

"Up to five," I answer, yawning. "But it works now."

Amy sighs. "Tails…"

"Seriously?" Shade says, eyes wide. "Well, color me impressed. I knew you were good, but I didn't think you were _that_ good. Is it a perfect replication?" She smiles.

"Shade!" Amy protests, frowning. "Tails, did you at least eat before you came here?"

"I wasn't hungry," I answer, shrugging. I ignore her glare. Amy thinks I don't take care of myself very well. I look around the living room. Naturally, the girls are already taking good care of the Chaotix. Charmy is eagerly eating waffles, and Vector is devouring some eggs and hash browns. Espio, of course, is the calmest of the trio, and apparently he's already eaten and is just sipping some tea. Shadow is there, sitting next to Espio, Shade is standing behind the Chaotix's couch, and Knuckles and Rouge are standing together next to Vector.

Cream flies into the room and drops a Pop-Tart package into my lap. "You should eat something," she says, grinning. "If only to calm Amy down."

Sonic laughs and Amy rolls her eyes. I open the wrapper. Wild berry. Best kind. "Thanks," I answer.

Cream nods, and Charmy grins. "Cream, you're always so sweet and thoughtful," he says with a certain casual boldness. "Thanks again for taking us in for a while and the waffles and stuff."

She smiles, although I can see it's a little strained. "It's really no problem, Charmy," she answers politely. Shadow shoots me a look, clearly questioning Charmy. I shrug. Charmy has a crush on Cream, and subtlety is not his strong suit.

"How are you guys feeling?" I ask, biting a corner off of a Pop-Tart.

"Kind of sore," Charmy answers, shrugging and then wincing. "Vector's pretty sore too. All of us have headaches. But we're good besides that!"

"I think Espio's the only useful one of us right now," Vector says, grimacing. "As far as doing anything, anyways."

Espio shrugs, his eyes closed as he sips his tea. "It won't take long for you and Charmy to recover," he points out.

"So, um, how did you get in Eggman's hands?" I ask. "Or did I miss that part?"

"Actually, we haven't told our stories at all yet!" Charmy answers. "Sonic thought you'd want us to wait."

"Thanks," I say to Sonic. He shrugs and grins. "Sorry I made you guys wait…"

"We weren't really waiting," Vector says. "We had to catch up with Shadow here first, you know?"

Oh, yeah. I forgot they weren't there last night. Shadow crosses his arms. "So what happened?" he asks, leaning back.

"Well, Egghead seems to need money," Vector answers with a sigh. "That's how this whole thing got started. We'd gotten paid in advance for a recovery job, but we didn't have time to get it to the bank. So we figured we'd stick by it, you know? It was a good amount of cash."

"After an hour or so, one of Eggman's robots came in and took the package!" Charmy says indignantly. "It was really fast, and Vector and I couldn't keep up with it. And then Espio got in between it and the door, but it fired this laser thingy at him and he had to move out of the way. It left after that!"

"So we followed it," Espio says, putting down his tea and opening his eyes. "We weren't going to pass up a chance to investigate an Eggman creation."

"And it had our money!" Vector growls.

Charmy laughs. "That's all you ever care about, Vector," he teases with a grin.

"That's not true!" Vector retorts, scowling. "But it _was_ important!"

Charmy laughs again, but his laughter is abruptly cut off. I blink. I can't tell why it was cut off. "In any case," Espio says, sighing. Ah. Charmy _is_ sitting next to Espio. Espio allows his tail to become more visible as he pulls it away from Charmy's mouth. Rouge giggles at his muffling technique. Espio smirks. I sigh. These guys…

"We followed it," Vector picks up. "It went pretty far. We mighta lost it a couple of times if not for Espio." He grinned at the chameleon. "We ended up at this big industrial building."

"The doctor's base?" Shadow asks, leaning forward in curiosity. I also perk up my ears.

"It seemed to be," Espio says, crossing his legs and his arms. "I snuck in and let Vector and Charmy inside. In the process, I lost sight of the robot." He grimaces, obviously annoyed at this slight slip-up.

"So we decided to split up!" Charmy says. "Divide and conquer, right?"

"Maybe not the best of plans, now that I'm lookin' back," Vector says, frowning sheepishly. "Made it easier to take us out and all."

"How did that happen with each of you, exactly?" Sonic asks, leaning forward. He sounds oddly calm. I look over at him. He looks more serious than I've seen him in years.

"Well, another robot ran into me!" Charmy says. "I smacked it around a lot, it had to call backup and I broke a couple of its friends – " He pauses to look at Cream, I guess to see if she's impressed, but she's washing dishes while she's listening and isn't looking at him. He frowns. "Anyways, after a while, there were too many of them. They banged me up some and then one of the robots injected something with a needle into me, and I passed out."

"A clear liquid?" Shadow asks, making a face.

"Yup." Charmy turns to him. "Is that the same stuff you got?"

"Sounds the same." Shadow sighs, rubbing his temple.

"Basically the same story with me," Vector says with a sigh. "Serious armor on these bots. They barely broke when I was jawing 'em, and you know how much _that_ does."

I nod. Vector has a seriously powerful jaw. I hope his injuries didn't include spraining it. "Did the same thing happen to you, Espio?" I ask, looking at him.

The chameleon frowns. "No," he says at length. "I did get injected. But the robot that injected me snuck up on me. I barely had time to turn around."

A stunned silence fills the room. "Something snuck up on _you?_" Knuckles repeats incredulously. "That's even _possible?_"

Espio gives a short, bitter laugh. "Obviously. Although I appreciate the confidence." He frowns again. "That's the only reason I'm not as beat up as my teammates. I suppose it's a good thing, but…"

"The idea of something sneaking up on you is… a bit scary, to be honest," Rouge says, also frowning.

"Were you invisible?" Shade asks. Espio, eyes closed, nods. "Geez," she mutters.

Cream frowns and looks at me, motioning her hand under her chin. I realize why she wants this line to stop – it's probably killing Espio's pride that something caught him by surprise, and this line of questions is just salting the wounds. "So, uh, did you guys see anything especially troubling while you were there?" I ask hesitantly.

"I saw a room where a bunch of robots were being me," Charmy says. "I'm not sure what they were, but they had a bunch of stuff in their arms. I only recognized the laser thingy the other robot had." He crosses his arms. "There were at least two pumping out per second."

I blink. "That's… worrisome."

"He also seems to be working on an airship," Espio says, opening his eyes. "It was less than half constructed, I believe, but it was bigger than the Egg Carrier."

Amy frowns. She knows best just how big the Egg Carrier was. "That's not all," Vector adds. "There was this giant _thing_ in progress. I couldn't even tell what it was, besides huge. But it's probably nothing good."

"Fair conclusion," Sonic says with a sigh. "Tails, if you want to say 'I told you so', fell free."

I scratch my head. "I'm still not much for that."

"That's why it's best when you're in that position," Knuckles says with a grin.

I grin back. "Actually, there's something else I want to ask you guys about." I pull out the package I grabbed earlier.

Sonic furrowed his brow. "Tails, what is that?" he asks, looking worried.

"It was with the Chaotix when we found them," I answer. "I scanned it to make sure it wasn't a bug or a bomb or something, but I wanted to look at it with them here."

Vector's eyes widen and he grabs the package. "I don't believe it," he mutters. "That stupid – "

"Vector?" Cream asks, standing with her arms crossed.

He throws the package to the ground. "That's the _payment_ he took!" he growls. A packet of bills is poking out of an open corner.

Sonic stands up. "It's all _there_ still?" he asks, looking as incredulous as I'm feeling.

Espio picks up the package and looks inside. "So it would seem," he answers tersely.

"But… why?" Rouge says, crossing her arms.

Espio tilts his head and pulls a paper out. "This isn't our client's handwriting, Vector," he says, handing the paper to the crocodile.

Vector takes the paper and reads it. "That obese jerk," he growls.

"What?" I ask, frowning. He hands it to me, his jaw clenched. I look at it and decide to read it out loud. "_You three are as predictable and daft as ever. You don't change. However, I do. We aren't that desperate for money anymore._" I furrow my brow and flip it over. "_And tell Sonic he can't stop the Robotnik reign this time. I'm thoroughly prepared for him._ And it has his little insignia."

The silence seems very heavy in the room. Vector mutters, "It _is_ all there." I turn to him. I hadn't realized he was counting the money.

"Seems like an awful lot of trouble to go through to drop off a note," Amy says, crossing her arms. "What came out of this, exactly? Why was this worthwhile for him?"

"Well, for one thing, he's flicking us off pretty well," Knuckles growls, crossing his arms.

Cream frowns. "Guys, wait. The warehouse was mostly empty, right? The only things that were there were the Chaotix, this package, and…" She turns her head. "…and Shadow." She looks at Shadow with a puzzled expression.

Shadow crosses his arms and grimaces. Shade frowns. "Based on what you said, you and Eggman weren't on good terms," she says. "So what would have motivated him to let you go? The bug is too risky to be the reason. I'm sure he knew we'd scan you."

The dark hedgehog furrows his brow. I bite my lip. "Maybe he was hoping Shadow would kill one of us," I hesitantly offer. Rouge shoots me a disbelieving look. "No, wait, hear me out. Shadow, when you saw Cream, you thought she was a robotic doppelganger at first, right?"

Shadow frowns. "That's true, but I don't recall telling you this," he answers, narrowing his eyes in suspicion.

"Ah. Cream told Sonic, Amy, and I about it after you left." I sigh. "Anyways, you tried to break her. Inevitably, you would have tried the same thing with any of us with the same train of thought. I think most of us would have fought you back, and that would just confirm your thoughts about so-and-so is a robot. You wouldn't realize until too late…"

"Oh my God," Amy says. "I didn't even think of that…"

Shadow frowns and looks away. I cross my arms. "And then you wouldn't want to go near us. Honestly, you're easier to take out alone than with us." Shadow looks up and glares at me, starting to say something, but I cut him off. "No, stop. Don't argue that. You've gotten a lot more done with your team or with GUN or with us than you have solo. That's indisputable."

Shadow still seems angry, but he doesn't answer this. Rouge crosses her arms. "Good thing Cream found him, then," she murmurs.

I frown. "That's the only problem I have with this theory. Eggman would have guessed that two out of six of us wouldn't have fought him, but just proven ourselves real. Cream and I, at least. Rouge might not have fought him either. The odds of success don't balance out well enough with the cost of failure, which would be Shadow working with us to hunt Eggman down."

Shadow tilts his head, and he seems surprised at me. I realize he probably thought I would fight him. "Maybe Eggie just felt like taking a gamble," Charmy says, shrugging slightly. "I mean, what other reason could there be?"

"We might just be missing information," Cream says with a sigh. "If that was at least partially the reason, I'm very glad it didn't work out."

"Agreed," Rouge and I both say. I tap my finger against my chin as I reread Eggman's note. A couple of things seem off about it… but what?

Shadow sighs. "There's one other thing that's been overlooked in what came out of this," he says, crossing his arms. He looks at the Chaotix again. "We know where the doctor's base is now."

Espio frowns and stands up. "You think that was intentional?" he asks.

"He let you run around the base for a while. And his note is clearly a taunt." He grimaces.

"You have a fair point, Shadow," Sonic says, rubbing his temple. "Espio, do you think you could get us back there?"

Espio crossed his arms. "Of course I can, but to be perfectly honest, I think an exploration would go better once Charmy and Vector and go as well." He looks down at his teammates, and the bee's bruises are especially obvious. "They saw areas that I didn't. And I'm sure they want to strike back at Eggman as much as I do."

"Sure." Sonic pauses. "Vector and Charmy, you guys think you'll be good day after tomorrow?"

"You can't be serious." Shadow takes a step forward. "We're going to give Eggman two more days to get ready for us?" He looks angry again.

"Shadow, things would be better with Charmy and Vector," I say, frowning.

"Eggman's already had seven years to prepare," Sonics says with a sigh. "I don't see what difference two days will make." He crosses his arms.

Shadow scowls. "Espio, just tell me where the base is," he says. "I don't need anyone to come with me."

Espio frowns. Rouge taps her foot. "Shadow, just because you're the Ultimate Lifeform doesn't mean you're invincible," she says, frowning. "And Eggman's already taken you out once with his tranquilizer thing. You really thing we're going to chance that again?"

Shadow clenches his fists. "I don't need your concern." He turns back to Espio. "Tell me where the base is."

Espio turns hesitantly to Vector. I frown and try to think of something to talk Shadow out of this…

Vector flies at Shadow and snaps his jaw at his legs.

Both Shadow and Vector cry out in pain, Vector rubbing his jaw and letting go of Shadow. He must have hurt his jaw against those armored robots after all. Shadow's legs look a little torn up, and Shadow looks livid. "Chaos – " He pulls his hand back, and I see a spear forming in his hand.

"No!" Cream cries, flying in front of Shadow and pushing his arms up.

" – Spear!" It was too late to stop the Chaos power, and the energy flies into the ceiling.

The ceiling breaks at the point of impact, and a large piece of plaster falls down, towards where Shade is standing. She starts to move aside, but Knuckles, in a moment of his usual thoughtless heroism, flies at her and knocks her out of the way. I sigh. Rouge will be steamed. Again. I look back at Shadow. "Will you – move!" he says to Cream, angry.

"Shadow, please!" she says, pleading with her big brown eyes. "You can't start fighting with Vector! For one thing, you'll tear the house up, and for another thing, you'll regret it later!" She tightens her grip on Shadow's wrists. "Shadow, if we start fighting, we're going to be doing exactly what Eggman wants!"

He narrows his eyes at her. "Tell that to the crocodile," he says in a sharp anger.

Cream sighs and turns her head to Vector. "Why _did_ you bite Shadow?" she asks, giving him a look.

Vector is rubbing his jaw still. "Just trying to keep him from self-destructing in Eggman's base cuz he won't listen to anyone," he says quietly, muffled slightly by his rubbing. "He'll be fine by day after tomorrow."

I cover my mouth to hide my sudden smirk. Nice, Vector. Cream sighs. "Only because he's a fast healer. Honestly. If your jaw that needs recovery, you should be fine for a home repair job, right?" She tilts her head to the hole in the ceiling – er, roof.

Vector scratches his head sheepishly. "Sure, Cream. Sorry about that."

"You'll also recover faster if you talk less," Cream teases, smirking. "Shadow, let's treat your legs before they get infected or something. Amy, do you mind cleaning up the blood?" Amy, who had been holding Sonic as a reaction to the fighting, nods and walks off to find a mop. "Sonic, can you help with the ceiling clean-up?" She tilts her head slightly towards Rouge, and Sonic catches her drift and winks in confirmation. "Tails, I'm sorry, do you mind helping Vector with the repair?"

"No prob, Cream," I answer. As usual, her calming the situation amazes me.

As I fly up to the hole, I can still hear everything in the living room. "Cream, can I do anything?" Charmy asks eagerly.

Cream sighs. "If you can fly, you can grab hydrogen peroxide and gauze and stuff. If not, just make sure the TV works or something."

Knuckles snorts at the second option. "I apologize about the ceiling," Shadow says quietly. "Perhaps I should help…"

"Absolutely not," Cream says flatly. "You need to rest for a while, stay off your legs for a while and stuff. And you should probably get some sleep at some point. Even if you don't need it normally, you'll heal faster with sleep." She sighs.

"Um… ow." I hear Charmy land.

"Don't worry about it, Charmy. Shade, can you get the medical stuff?"

"Sure," Shade answers, and I can hear her climbing on a wall.

"Cream, do you mind if I take this to the bank?" Espio asks, sounding slightly amused. "I think we'll all feel a little better once it's taken care of."

"Of course," Cream answers. I hear the fizz of the peroxide reacting. "Do you mind picking up food somewhere? I'll pay you back."

"No, you won't. This one's on us." The sound of Espio's hand on the doorknob. "Anyone really dislike Chinese food?"

I smile as the suggestions flow to Espio. Nice work, Cream.

Still… I think back on the note. There's just _something _about that note. What is it?

I need more sleep before we go to Eggman's base, clearly.

* * *

**Tails: Well, this makes up for the last one being shorter.**

**Me: Yeah, I think that's going to happen with the night chapters for a little while. Haha. -sweat drop-**

**Sonic: Your first draft of this wasn't anywhere near this long.**

**Me: Well, yeah, but I didn't have as awesome of plans and stuff the first time! It took me a lot longer to write than I thought it would, though...**

**Amy: Don't you need to note pairings?**

**Me: Do I? Okay, so there's some TAISMO and some one-sided CHAREAM introduced here. That's really it.**

**Amy: Haha! I love pairings!**

**Sonic: So we've noticed...**

**Espio: In any case... please submit your reviews.**

**Charmy: See you next week!**


	5. Night 2: Knuckles

**Knuckles: Well, it's about TIME!**

**Shade: Seriously! What have you been doing?**

**Me: -sigh- I'm just gonna copy what's on my profile...**

**I suppose explaining is useless, at this point. Fanfiction failed, and then I failed, and I don't even know what else in between... It's summer now, so hopefully I'll be updating a LOT. I've got Night 2 and most of Day 3 done, so, if Fanfiction decides to WORK, I'll be updating it ASAP. Also, I've decided to change the "character" thing to whoever's POV is up. Here's hoping I'll be better in the future, and sorry for long hiatus.**

**Me: I only had like two people reading this anyway, so I don't know how big a deal it is.**

**Rouge: ...at this point, I guess it's just best to keep it going, right?**

**Me: That was my thought. Knuckie?**

**Knuckles: -twitches- Dreamweaver the Writer does not own any of the characters introduced so far. Let's go.**

* * *

**Night 2: Knuckles**

I feel my feet touch solid ground, and I open my eyes. I never have my eyes open during teleportation. It's like an unspoken rule. I hear the leaves of the tree rustle, smell the scent of dying grass in the air, and I feel Shade's arm shift. I let go. "See you later," Shade says, nodding and turning away.

"You're just going home?" I ask, frowning. Usually we talk for a little while before we go our separate ways. I enjoy these talks.

"Today was a really long day, so I'm beat," she answers with a yawn. "Besides, aren't you in enough trouble anyways?"

I sigh. The latter part is definitely true. "See you later." I begin the walk to the Master Emerald. I _am_ in trouble. Grief, Rouge gets upset when I grab Shade's arm to stinking _teleport_. That's just _practical_. How much more when I dramatically push her out of the way of the collapsing ceiling and end up on top of her?

I watch autumn leaves twirl in front of me. It wasn't like I was trying to make her angry. I would have pushed anyone standing where Shade was in the same way. It just happened to be Shade, didn't it? What the heck was I supposed to do?

The sound of my footsteps changes as I begin the walk up the altar's staircase. This is too much stress. I don't know how much longer I can hold up. I never thought _I_ would be the one caught up in a triangle. . . that always seemed more Sonic's thing, with how competitive Amy's been over the years.

I sense something in the altar, and I freeze. "Who's there?" I say, sounding much stronger than I feel. I'm glad the Emerald's still in its place, but if they left it, does that mean this person wants something to do with _me?_ "Show yourself!" I bark, holding up my fists.

Something slams into the back of my head with a lot of force. I fall forward, land on my outstretched hands, and push myself up quickly. A lifetime of guardian training has trained me to ignore the throbbing pain in the back of my head, to tune it out and to focus only on my opponent. Whatever this thing is, it's vanished already, and try as I may, I can't hear any footsteps. Growling, I jump on the Emerald. Whatever this guy is after, he won't get that. Not if I can help it.

I hear something whizzing through the air just in time to roll out of the way. Something flies past me, but my back is to it, and I don't see what it is. I land on the altar floor and turn quickly to see. . . nothing again! How does this guy keep vanishing as soon as I turn?

I begin assessing what I know about my opponent, which is painfully limited. He's very fast, and he seems to prefer a tricky play. If I can disrupt his trick, then maybe. . .

I hear the whizzing sound again, and I jump onto a pillar. I continue to look where I was just standing, and I hear the person land, but. . . is this person invisible? There's nothing there, as far as I can see. I launch back to the ground, but the person has already moved.

I grimace. I think I know what to do.

The air stirs again, and I feel something on my back. Quickly, I turn and slam my opponent into the ground. As I suspect, the invisibility falls apart. But. . .

"Espio?" I ask, furrowing my brow.

The chameleon takes advantage of my confusion to push my fists away and coughs. "Nice to see you're still up to par, Knuckles," he says, smiling slyly. "Although you do realize I could have killed you several times with shuriken if I had wanted to."

"You're one of the few that could, so I'm not really concerned." Now that I think about it, I should have realized it was him. It's been a while, but usually when Espio comes to Angel Island, he likes to test me. I always seem to forget. I help him up and frown. "How did you get on the Island, anyway? We had the machine up, didn't we?"

"Of course." He brushes himself off. "I was holding onto Shade's other arm."

I snort. Well, that would certainly explain why she ran off so quickly. "Well, you're as sharp as ever, Espio. Even when you're recovering."

He crosses his arms and leans back. "I've been better," he says glumly. I suddenly remember that this is a sore point for him right now and bite my lip. He sighs. "I suppose it's of no real importance at the moment. I appreciate your sentiment."

"Uh, sure." I look at the Emerald. "So, any reason you decided to drop in?"

"Partially for conversation," he says. "I've actually been meaning to talk with you about this for about a month now."

I sigh and turn around. "If it's what I think it is. . ."

"Explain what's going on in your head about this little triangle going on."

Knew it. "Geez, Es, I don't know. Why are you asking, anyways?"

He opens his eyes abruptly, and he looks a bit annoyed. "Because from the very beginning you've been sending out mixed signals about the both of them," he snaps, narrowing his eyes. "That's one thing when you're confused and single, but being confused and having a girlfriend simultaneously is an entirely different matter. I've been trying to figure this out for the last three months, you've been dodging around this subject for the last three months, and I think it's about time you explain what in the world is going on."

I frown. The problem is, everything he's saying is entirely fair. If I were say I were close to anyone, Espio would certainly be high up on the list. I have been dodging around this subject. It's really not a great thing for any party involved. What am I supposed to do?

I lean against the Emerald and cross my arms. "It's. . . really confusing. I would say that I don't like them fighting all the time, because it's really not them that needs to choose, it's me. And I don't like them fighting, because it makes my life too daggone complicated. But I don't know how to choose between them."

Espio gives me a look. "If you haven't chosen between them, why in the world are you with Rouge?"

"She's known me for longer and we've kind of been interested in each other for longer." I sigh. "The problem is, Shade and I are also interested in each other. And I just don't know how to pick. So, I thought maybe I should just try a relationship with one of them and see how it goes."

The chameleon closes his eyes, and I have no idea what he's thinking any more. "Why do you like each of them? What makes you hesitate about being with either of them?"

I frown. What? I don't know how to answer him. . . The girls are so different, but they both. . . why is that?

After a moment of silence, Espio opens his eyes again and I can see thinly veiled anger in the yellow. "Until you can answer those questions and make a rational decision, Knuckles, you're not doing anyone a favor. You're leading Rouge on, you're misleading Shade, and you're making things way more complicated than it needs to be. Trying a relationship with one of them is fine if you really need an ultimate decision, but if you're not careful about what you're doing, you will end up losing them both. And you should be taking in a lot about what both of them are like from this." He paces a little bit, rubbing his temple. "I hope Rouge knows, at least, that she's on a trial run."

I bite my lip. Uh, nope, did not tell her that. I couldn't think of a good way to tell her. . .

"At any rate, that was my personal curiosity, not what I came for." He shakes his head. "I actually wanted to ask for your help with something."

"Did you?" I answer, relieved about the subject change. "What do you need help with?"

"Well, the job that we got paid in advance for is time-sensitive, and I'm missing two of my team members." Espio stops pacing and turns to me to gauge a reaction.

"What's the job and when?" I ask. It must be pretty soon if he can't wait for Vector and Charmy to do it.

He sighs. "Our client is a wealthy cat with a daughter, in her early twenties. Recently, someone kidnapped the son and sent a ransom note to the father, asking for a sum of about half of his entire estate. In addition, the kidnapper has specified a rather dangerous location, so as to discourage ordinary law enforcement getting involved. Our client has employed our services in the past, and he knows what we're capable of."

"So he wanted you guys to rescue his son instead of paying the ransom?" I clarify, giving him a look.

Espio tilts his head downward slightly. "Don't misunderstand me. He wouldn't hesitate to pay the ransom if it actually guaranteed his daughter safe at home. But you know how these things go."

"I'm actually not very familiar with this kind of stuff, but I believe you." I sigh. "When?"

"Tomorrow."

I bite my lip. "I want to help you, Es. I'm just going to let you know now, though, that Rouge is going to be furious that this came up at all."

He frowns. "Why?"

"We were planning to go treasure hunting in Red Canyon tomorrow." Most of the time Rouge and I go on dates, it's treasure hunting. It's exciting, she loves it, and the Master Emerald's in good hands, so there's no reason not to. I had actually been slightly relieved we wouldn't have to reschedule for exploring Egghead's base, but. . .

"I had actually hoped to ask for her help as well." Espio crosses his arms. "The exchange is actually supposed to be in Red Canyon, in the volcano area. Would it be pointless to talk to her?"

"Hm. . . depends. Do you mind waiting to talk to her until morning, and how well could you stay out of the way if we both went on the job?"

Espio gives me a puzzled look. But I have an idea that could make this work.

Maybe.

* * *

**Me: I don't know how I feel about this chapter, but it was a little necessary. Sorry.**

**Knuckles: Eh, whatever. Story's moving.**

**Me: But there's going to be some action in the next chapter! Yay!**

**Cream: Please review! As always, feel free to guess on pairings and such -**

**Rouge: And to blast Jessi for her long hiatus!**

**Cream: Rouge!**

**Me: Nah, it's fine, I deserve all blasting. See you soon!**


	6. Day 3: Espio

**Rouge: So, you don't update for months, and then one day, you just decide to update twice in one day?**

**Me: Well, it didn't take long to finish this chapter.**

**Espio: Are you trying to atone for being gone for so long?**

**Me: ...can you just do the disclaimer, please?**

**Espio: -sighs- Dreamweaver the Writer does not own any of the characters so far.**

* * *

**Day 3: Espio**

"Let me make sure I'm understanding you," Rouge says, rubbing her temple, and closing her eyes. "So, we can't really go on our date because some rich guy's brat got kidnapped, and Espio can't handle it on his own?"

I cringe at this second part. Rouge tilts her head and furrows her brow in frustration. "Not only that, but you're trying to make up for it by having him stay at a distance most of the time, so that we're practically on a date unless our horned friend needs us? Am I getting this right?"

Knuckles bites his lip. "It sounds a lot sillier coming out of your mouth," he admits. I frown. If I had realized this was his bright idea, I doubt I would have gone along with it. Unfortunately, I need to go to Red Mountain today. Knuckles has already agreed to help, but this would go much smoother with Rouge helping us out. Especially since Knuckles will be more distracted if he thinks Rouge is mad at him. . .

"That's because I'm the voice of freaking _reality_, Knuckles." She shakes her head and taps her foot.

"I apologize for ruining your day, Rouge," I say quietly, crossing my arms. "I wouldn't have asked for your help if I could think of anyone better suited for the job." I frown pensively. Cream is too busy with home repairs, being a medic, keeping the peace. . . Tails is working on some new machinery for the investigation. . . if Charmy was good enough for this, I wouldn't even be in this situation right now. . .

"It's not your fault that Eggjerk took out your teammates for the day, Espio," she says with a sigh. The bat grimaces and opens her eyes. "Okay. I'm in."

"You are?" Knuckles asks, grinning.

"Well, volcanoes do tend to have some pretty good jewels in their core." She shrugs and spreads her wings.

I almost sigh. Naturally, Rouge finds a selfish benefit out of. . .

"Besides, it's not like we can just leave the kid, right?"

I blink and look up. She tilts her head. "Right?" she repeats. "Shouldn't we go?"

I inhale deeply to compose myself. "Yes," I answer. "Let's go." I begin to run towards the mountain, and I hear the rough sound of Knuckles' feet and the flap of Rouge's wings.

"Thanks, babe," he says behind me. He's not speaking loudly, but I have much better hearing than anyone gives me credit for. "I'm really sorry about this. . ."

"Just don't think this counts as a date," Rouge answers him archly, and I hear her ascend. I shake my head slightly. That woman is always pulling out surprises. . .

We reach the steel walkway of the mountain. "Try to maintain a low profile," I say to them, turning around. "There's no knowing what our opponent will do if he sees us. I doubt he would harm the girl, but. . ."

"Better safe than sorry," Rouge says, nodding. Now that I think about it, she _is_ a GUN agent, and missions like this are probably something she's done rather often.

"Exactly," I agree. "And if at all possible, I'd like for him to not know what's going on until it's too late for retaliation."

"It's always fun to see their face at that point," Rouge says with a smirk.

"Piece of cake," Knuckles agrees, grinning.

"I'll let you know if I need you," I add. "Let me know if you need me."

They nod and take off in the air. I run beneath them. I suppose the mountains are high enough that two could be in the air and keep a low profile. . .

The area is a tough terrain for most, but our skills make it particularly easy for us. Rouge flies, Knuckles climbs and glides and is a general mountaineer, and I'm fast and can walk on walls. I hadn't thought about this before, but perhaps it's for the best that Vector and Charmy couldn't come. Vector wouldn't be able to maneuver adeptly, and Charmy would have intensely disliked the terrain to the point of hampering his abilities. The way this team happened is a bit unfortunate, but results are results, and I can't complain.

I think about our opponent. Whoever he is, he has access to a great amount of force, and he wants money. He's also. . . what is the word. . . mobile, perhaps, enough to effectively hold someone in the pit of a volcano. He could get in and he's confident he could get out if he needed to.

Unfortunately, that's still too broad a description to suspect a single candidate as the kidnapping mastermind. Money is a common motive, and I'm certain many people could come here if necessary. . .

"It's just aggravating how many plans get ruined because of Dr. Eggman," Rouge says tightly. I almost look up, until I remember she's talking to Knuckles and I'm not paying attention to them anyway.

"Yeah," Knuckles agrees, and I hear him push off the cliff face into the air. "At the same time, though, I doubt we would have ever come together without him."

"I would have gotten to you inevitably." I can imagine the coy smirk that goes with her smug tone. I run on a steep canyon wall, and they glide beneath me. "After all, you _did_ have the Master Emerald under your guardianship. I wasn't going to let you keep that beauty to yourself, after all."

The echidna laughs. "Right. You trying to steal the Emerald from me was definitely going to win me over, all right!"

"I suppose you might have had a hard time with it at first, but you know I could be pretty. . . charming, if I want." I jump across a gap and spin, just in time to see her wink at him. I land carefully and continue running. Almost there.

"But would you be trying to win me over, or trying to get to the Emerald?"

Now the bat laughs. "_That's_ the right question, Knuckie. Probably just get to the Emerald. . ."

"So, we still wouldn't have gotten anywhere without – "

". . . BUT." I hear the air stir as she spins. "But, there's no saying what might have happened once I realized the kind of person you are. My plan might have fallen apart at that point, because it never works once you actually like the guy."

I stop in front of the entrance, and I turn around just in time to see Knuckles flush and Rouge smirking at his flush. To keep in character, I give them a look and shake my head. "We can sneak in this way," I say to them. "They've probably got someone stationed here, so do me a favor and let me go first. Once you see people falling. . ."

"Create stealthy chaos," Rouge finishes with a grin. "Can do."

I nod and turn around, walking ahead and changing my skin simultaneously. Inhale. Focus.

The tunnel is extremely hot. Naturally. It's inside an active volcano. Upon exiting the narrow tunnel, I examine the area. The rock formation has created a strange room, so to speak, in the middle of the path, and it seems this is where the girl is being held. The space is about two, perhaps two and a half, stories tall, and as wide as Cream's rather large living room. A separate, narrow path has formed about a story above a lava pool. (This is the level on which I am currently standing.) Floating on this pool is an immense rock, and on this platform stand two odd creatures. They have long tails and they're wearing strange silver suits, cowboy hats, and bandanas. I furrow my brow. Really, it's an odd ensemble. What is the purpose of these suits? The two seem to be guarding something – likely, my client's daughter – but presently, one of them is blocking my view.

I examine the path to my left. More of these creatures are watching over the rock with their two comrades and the girl. I look further down the path, and I can see perhaps a dozen of them. Inspecting the creature closest to me, I recognize the silver suits to be made of a fireproof material. I would have to assume they were to keep the heat out. Perhaps they have thicker fur than Knuckles or Rouge?

There's a movement on the lower rock. I look down and see that the two guards have moved. I can see my client's daughter. She's sitting in a chair with her hands behind her. She has yellow fur and long black hair, and I can see the silver glint of duct tape around her mouth. I notice all of these individuals are carrying large sticks. I frown. The odd thing is, none of these seem to be the leader of this scheme. Who is?

I suppose it doesn't matter greatly at this moment. I jab my finger at a pressure point on the nearest person's neck, and instantly he collapses. The person next to him looks over curiously, hearing only the sound, and I quickly take him out as well. I hear Rouge fly out to take out some more, but only because I'm listening for her. Knuckles digs into a wall nearby, to travel underground.

Hopping on the rock, I approach my client's daughter, remaining invisible. I look around to see if the leader is more visible from here, but still, none of these creatures stand out as the head. . .

One of the creatures falls from an upper tunnel and lands with a resounding crash on the platform. I frown and look up. The tip of a dreadlock is all that's visible. I rub my temple. I suppose stealth was never Knuckles' strongest suit. . .

My client's daughter, the cat, looks up abruptly, and for one heart-stopping moment, I think she must have seen me, because she's looking right where I'm standing.

But she quickly redirects her gaze to the momentarily distracted bodyguard to her right and hurls her fist out to his face. The duct tape on her wrists is torn. The other guard turns around in surprise and lifts his weapon, but she jumps on the first guard's shoulders, her wings becoming visible (wait, wings? A cat with wings?), and swings her foot out. I can hear the bone in his face crack as her foot continues its spin, and he similarly collapses. She hops to the ground, tearing the duct tape off of her mouth and warily scanning the room, looking for an exit. I look back to the upper tunnels, and I see a telltale glint. Quickly, I throw a blade.

_BANG._

The cat freezes and turns abruptly to the gunfire. I become visible, and she lets out a sound. I ignore her for now and look for the sniper. I had seen the shot lodge in the ceiling, away from where Knuckles might have been digging, and I heard just, before the gunshot, the rip of fabric. My blade landed in the fabric of his sleeve and moved his arm. I had been aiming for his arm, but I suppose that was close enough.

I hear the zipper of a fireproof suit, and in a second a new individual appears at the edge of the upper path. He's the only one with a pistol, so logic follows he's the leader I've been searching for. He growls and hops down to my level. He has dark, beady eyes, purple fur, and an oversized tooth. "I thought you would be here," he hisses. "You're better than I heard, I'll give you that much. But then again, what I heard was that you were completely incompetent, so it's not much improvement."

I narrow my eyes slightly. His insults are really not any of my concern, but who does he think he is to be speaking to me like this when I've just dealt the better blow? He turns to the cat. "You surprised me, girlie, I'll admit that much." She crosses her arms. "A cat with wings? You might be worth more than I expected." He points his revolver at her feet. "Now the real question is, how well can you fly?" Her eyes widen, and I tense. He starts to pull the trigger –

"Fang?" Knuckles says, surprise ringing through his voice. "What are _you_ doing here? I thought you were out of commission since the last time. . ." He hops on the platform behind the weasel. The cat – my client, I suppose – blinks and furrows her brow, trying to piece together the situation.

The weasel sighs and releases the trigger, lowering the gun. "You sure know how to ruin my moments, don't you, Knucklehead?" Fang turns to Knuckles and smirks. "Just because I haven't run into you and your little ensemble doesn't mean I haven't been _around._ I must say, though, I would've guessed you'd be the type to blow a stealth operation. Clumsy, aren't you?"

Knuckles flushes in fury. "Excuse – ?"

"Fang the Sniper, hm?" Rouge says, landing behind Fang and away from Knuckles. "Part weasel, part wolf. A strong tail and even better with a weapon." She walks up to him, her hips swaying as she does so. "I've heard a lot about you. You'll do just about anything for money and beautiful women, right?" At this point she's close enough to kiss him, and she tilts her head downward to give him a seductive look.

I turn to Knuckles to see him giving me a disbelieving look. I motion for him to remain absolutely silent. To be honest, I was initially surprised at her behavior as well, but I might have figured. That last statement made it click – she was doing this as part of the job, to throw him off. It's certainly bold of Rouge to pull this in front of her very reactive boyfriend, but she's always done whatever the job required of her. . .

The wolf-weasel grins. "Seems you've done your homework, babe," he answers. Knuckles scowls at Fang's choice of words, but luckily, Fang is too distracted to notice the agitated echidna. "Now the question is, why haven't I heard of _you_ before?" His eyes rest on her massive chest and he tilts his head.

Knuckles glares and actually starts to say something, but my client reaches over and covers his mouth. I try not to laugh. _She_ seems to get the situation, anyway.

Rouge closes her eyes, smirks, and chuckles. "Part of the job, cutie," she answers, opening her eyes slowly. "Staying secret, and throwing the opponent off." At this, she knocks the gun out of his hand and, pushing his hands behind his back, snaps handcuffs on his wrists. "Luckily, I'm pretty good at both," she says, her words turning into a snarl. Fang's eyes widen in surprise, but before he can react, she gets behind him and pushes him toward the edge of the platform. She picks up his gun. "Now, what do you want to do with this?" Rouge asks, turning to me. She's smirking, triumphant.

Knuckles looks befuddled, and my client gives her an amused look. I chuckle and take the gun from her. Examining it briefly, I recognize it as a .44 Magnum. "Oh, I don't know," I answer. "It might be interesting to see what happens if one of his little gang members gets a hold of this instead of one of those dumb twigs. How much of a share do you think he promised them from this job?"

Fang turns around, pale with anger. "Now – hold on – "

Rouge looks at him with some disgust, and sweeps his feet out from under him. He crashes to the ground, crying out in sudden pain. She turns back to me like there was no interruption. "The only fair way to see who gets it is to let them fight over it," the bat answers, gesturing to the center of the platform. I place it down with mocking carefulness. "Hey, Kitty," she says to my client, "who had the duct tape?"

The cat tilts her head. "My name's not Kitty," she says in a low, feminine voice, "but I'm guessing you don't care." She walks over to one of the creatures who had been her bodyguard, reaches in his bag, and tosses Rouge the silver roll.

Rouge catches it and winks. "Thanks, doll." She turns to Fang, pulling out duct tape as she does.

Fang hastily stands as his eyes widen in fear. New fear from this gorgeous, dangerous woman. "Wait a min– "

The bat covers his mouth and rapidly wraps his ankles, lower legs, and tail together in the silver tape. "And for the record," she says, quietly enough for everyone to hear, "that clumsy echidna is the only person in the _world_ who's allowed to call me babe." With that, she kicks high and knocks him out. He falls to the ground again.

Knuckles, who has been watching Rouge with a mixture of anger and confusion, gives a little half-smile. His confusion is still highly evident, but that's Rouge's problem, not mine. I turn to my client. "Espio the Chameleon, at your service," I introduce myself, bowing slightly. "Are you ready to go home?"

The cat bows back to me. "I'm ready to go," she answers. "Thank you for coming for me."

I nod. "Let's pull out," I say to Knuckles and Rouge. "Or were you staying here?"

"Not in this area, but I had hoped to stay in Red Canyon," Rouge answers, smirking. "Knuckie?"

"Uh, yeah, I'll stay," he stammers, scratching his head. "You don't need any more help, Es?"

"I've got it. Thank you for your help today." I nod to them both. Rouge grabs Knuckles' hand and they fly out of the volcano. I look at my client, tilt my head, and walk toward the exit. She walks behind me.

We walk in silence for a while, making our way out of the canyon zone. She seems able to navigate the area surprisingly well, so I can focus on proceeding.

"You know, I don't want to stay back home," she says, and I turn around to see her frown. "I'm too much of a liability as I am now."

"How so?" I ask, turning back to my path. We've almost returned at this point.

"Like. . ." I hear her cross her arms. "I don't know. I mean, I wasn't _awful_ in a combat situation, but I didn't do anything really helpful. To be honest, I think that bat girl was the only reason we got out of that. What were their names, by the way? I'm guessing they aren't your usual colleagues."

I turn back to her and give her a look. "Rouge the Bat and Knuckles the Echidna. My usual colleagues are. . . in recovery, as it were." Did she honestly think Rouge was the only reason we came out unscathed? Rouge certainly did help things proceed more smoothly, but was my role really that lackluster in comparison?

"I see." She glances off and bites her lip. "You have good friends."

I simply nod. (Although I will avoid bringing Knuckles to another stealth operation.) "And you weren't as bad as you were saying," I add. "If you want, though, I know someone who may be helpful to you. He's stronger than anyone I know, and very fast. He'd be able to train you, if you'd like."

She tilts her head. "What, um, is he like?"

"He's a pacifist. He tries to only use his skills to defend. I think you'd get along pretty well." I write on the back of a Chaotix Detective Agency card. "I'm not sure if you'd be able to reach him. He travels a lot.. . . but this is the only number I have for him. It's the best way I know to reach him."

The cat takes the card and reads the name and number, eyes shining. "Thank you so much, Espio." She smiles. "For everything."

I nod, still a little lost in thought. We've reached the estate, and an overjoyed father.

* * *

"Understood." I hang up on Vector and sigh. "Okay, I apologize for the trouble. Can you put... this much..." I shove a sizeable percentage, about twenty, across the marble counter, "into the Chaotix account, and..." I look at the remaining money blankly for a second, and sigh. "I apologize, but could you give me a moment to recount?"

The dog behind the counter smiles. "It's not a problem, sir." He scoops the money for the Chaotix account towards him. "I'll need you to sign here."

I sign and pick up the rest of the money. It's a blessing and a curse that our client pays in cash. The blessing is obvious, but the curse is the management. As expected, the pay from this job was impressive, which makes it hard to carry.

Sighing, I count out the money in thirds. Usually, one for me, one for Charmy, and one for Vector. This time, one for me, one for Rouge, and one for Knuckles.

I frown and rethink the job. My usefulness was evident, as was Rouge's. What did Knuckles do, anyway? Blow our cover? What else? I grimace and forcefully move some of the money from Knuckles' share to Rouge's. The sound of the slam causes the banker to give me a strange look, but I didn't particularly care.

_Espio, he _did _ask Rouge to help in the first place_, I remind myself. _He put a lot on the line to help you. And his distraction did give the girl a chance to break loose, and he kept Fang from firing at her. . ._ I blink and furrow my brow. Why am I mad at Knuckles anyway? Sure, he didn't do a great job today, but he did his job, and he'd proven himself by now. . .

I look at the piles of money again and reconsider. Then I shrug. Rouge will still get the larger payment. She was more useful, and Knuckles will probably turn down the money anyways.

* * *

**No points for guessing who the cat was. Maybe points for guessing her future trainer. :P**

**Anyways, there ended up not being as much action as I expected from this chapter. Blame Espio and Rouge for that one. At any rate, I think I like this chapter, but I'm not sure. It was another one where I had a general idea what I was doing, and then towards the end Espio grabbed the pencil and stuck some things in that should be fun to work with later.**

**Espio: You're welcome.**

**Me: Yeah, yeah. Anyways, please review! Your comments and guesses make me smile!**

**Vector: Next chapter's me!**

**Me: Don't tell the croc, but it's supposed to be a shortish chapter. See you soon, hopefully!**

**EDIT: Unfortunately, I had to delete and repost the chapter to include this... I forgot to mention this, but Honey got a disproportionate amount of screen time for her relevance to the story. She's actually exiting the story at this point. I know she's why the chapter happened, but I was mostly using this chapter for interactions between the important characters, and setting up stuff for Espio in particular. Sorry if that threw off the guesses - and feel free to PM me comments in relation to this if you've already reviewed. (Although Fanfiction might delete the reviews? Oh, I don't know. I'll just PM you two. :-/ ) ~Jessi**


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